Danone reported strong third-quarter 2026 sales driven by its health-focused portfolio and price increases, even as its chief executive described the environment as «volatile», DairyReporter reports.

Key points:

  • Danone’s Q3 2026 sales reached EUR 7,233 million, up 4.0% on a like-for-like basis;
  • growth was driven by a 3.6% price increase and a 0.4% rise in volume and mix;
  • sales grew 1.9% in Europe, 4.4% in the Americas and 3.6% in Asia Pacific;
  • the company reiterated its full-year guidance.

Quarterly results

Danone’s Q3 2026 sales reached EUR 7,233 million, up 4.0% on a like-for-like (LFL) basis, driven by a 3.6% increase in price and a 0.4% rise in volume and mix. On a reported basis, sales rose 5.2%.

Europe, the Middle East and Africa

In Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Danone’s Essential Dairy and Plant-based (EDP) and Waters divisions performed positively. LFL sales rose 3.9%, with volumes down 0.4% and prices up 4.3%.

European sales grew 1.9% LFL, supported by positive volume and mix in EDP and Waters, although Specialized Nutrition remained under pressure.

Danone said EDP performed strongly in France, Spain and the UK, driven by brands including Danone, Alpro, Activia and High Protein.

In Specialized Nutrition, the infant milk formula situation normalised in the Middle East, while the category continued its gradual recovery in Europe. Waters enjoyed a strong season, with Volvic delivering double-digit growth.

The Americas

In the Americas, Danone highlighted action taken to restore performance in EDP North America, saying it had taken «decisive actions», including changes to execution and strengthening its innovation pipeline beyond high-protein products.

Strong growth, notably in Specialized Nutrition, lifted LFL sales in the region by 4.4%. Specialized Nutrition delivered an «outstanding performance», driven by Aptamil, Neocate and Kate Farms.

Waters grew strongly on the back of solid evian performance in North America and improved momentum in Mexico. In EDP, High Protein continued to drive growth across the region.

Asia Pacific

Asia Pacific (APAC) posted LFL sales growth of 3.6%, supported by sustained performances in Specialized Nutrition and EDP, although Waters had a poor season due to Mizone.

Danone said Specialized Nutrition in China, North Asia and Oceania (CNAO) delivered strong mid-single-digit growth, driven by both infant formula and Medical Nutrition. The rest of APAC was very dynamic, particularly Indonesia and India, while EDP continued to show strong momentum in Japan with both Activia and Oikos.

The company also announced that Chief Operations Officer Vikram Agarwal will retire in early 2027.

CEO comment

«We delivered another strong quarter in Q3, with like-for-like sales up +4.0%, reflecting broad-based momentum across categories and geographies», said Danone CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique.

«Our multi-engine growth model continues to demonstrate its resilience, underpinned by the strength and relevance of our health-focused portfolio. Demand for our winning platforms, from high protein to gut health and medical nutrition, remains strong across the world. In North America, we have taken decisive actions to further step up execution and sustainably restore performance».

«In an environment that remains volatile, we reiterate our full-year guidance with confidence», he added.

Source: DairyReporter